The Past
by Simply A Writer
Summary: The past has a funny way of catching up to you. When it does thought, it's going to make you pay for what you've done. Rated T for violence and language.  Probably
1. There's something here

**A/N: Bit of a slow starter by the looks of it, but bare with me; I promise it'll be good. X3**

Out in the desert, a small lithe creature ran, its odd eyes sparkling in the moonlight. Tumbleweed rolled by as it stopped on a ridge and stared at the moon, appearing to take a great delight in the celestial body in the inky sky. It purred softly before setting off again, kicking up dust from beneath its paws, moving at an unearthly pace. It spotted a lone building, stood in the desert. It smelled of gasoline and, what were they called, humans? The creature hissed as the sky rumbled deeply, clouds of black creeping across the stars, and slinked away into the structure, determined to avoid whatever soggy greetings the impending storm had to offer.

Vert looked up from underneath his Saber.

"Sage," He could've sworn he'd heard someone moving about. Glancing at the small clock-radio he kept under his car with his when he was working on it, Vert decided that everyone would be in bed; he should've been too. But there it was again. _Thump. Crash. Shuffle._ There was definitely someone upstairs. He got up, grabbing a large wrench on his way out of the hanger and headed off to find his mystery guest.

Vert had searched the entire Hub, but he'd found nothing. He'd given up looking after a few hours, concluding that it's was probably just something falling over in one of the cupboards. Now he was slouched over the table in the kitchen, tired with lack of sleep, looking desperately into a pot of coffee to keep him awake.

"Whoa," Spinner yelled through a mouthful of cookie "Captain's going down with his ship this morning."

"Only if he was commanding the Titanic," Stanford chuckled, strutting in with his usual arrogance; Mr. Fluffy tucked under one arm.

"Ah, come off it you two," Vert yawned. "I didn't get any sleep last night."

"And you tell me off for staying up late,"

"Zoom, don't you start too," Vert face palmed; it's going to a long day.

"Oh, man" Zoom groaned, glaring out of the window. "Guys, it's raining, big time."

"Perfect," Vert yawned again. "Guys, I'm taking a nap, unless something happens, don't wake me." He smiled softly and strode off to his room.

"Vert pull an all-nighter," Agura leaned against the doorframe in black shorts and a green tank top. The room nodded in response. "What kept him up this time?"

"Not sure," Zoom shrugged. "But I might have an idea, I need to talk to Sage."

|/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\|

"Sage," Zoom sprinted into the medi-bay, skidding to a halt before the sentient. "Sage, I think it's in here."

"Zoom, are you certain," Sage sounded concerned, but never let her eyes stray from the screen in front of her. "You could simply be experiencing a psychological- oh," Sage broke off as Zoom lifted the corner of his shirt and made her look at the three long neat claw marks near his hip.

"It's here, and it wants me," Zoom paced back and forth, thinking. "I've got to find a way to trap it or something, before it hurts someone."

"Too late," purred a soft silky voice, Zoom stiffened as something rubbed itself against his ankles. "I'm already here, and you know you can't stop me."

**A/N: REVIEWS PEOPLE! X3 I love it when you do! **


	2. No sleep and Paranoia

**A/N: It's short, sorry, I'm running on fumes. The plotline WILL kick into overdrive in our next chapter, I promise. =3**

Zoom jumped back from where he stood, his breath becoming laboured. Sage too looked troubled.

"What was that, and how did it get into the Hub?" Sage seemed to tense up as she spoke, typing rapidly on her keyboards again. Zoom stood, suddenly gasping for breath, eyes darting nervously around the room. "Zoom?" the young teen had started hyperventilating.

"Hey, Sage," Vert walked into the medi-bay. "What's going on, I can hear shouting. Are you alright?" His eyes darted to his scout. Zoom's eyes had glazed over, and his legs were slowly giving out.

"Sage, what the hell is going on?" Vert ran to his scout, lowering him to the floor before he fell. "Zoom, hush, calm down, it's alright. You're safe."

"No," Zoom whispered, clutching Vert's t-shirt, looking pleadingly into his eyes. "I'm not safe, none of us are…"

"Just breathe," Vert said softly. "It'll be alright." After a while of Vert chattering away to him, Zoom's eyes flickered shut and his breath came a little easier.

"Explain," Vert glared at Sage, his unconscious scout cradled against his chest. It was one simple word, but the authority it carried was frightening.

"I'm not sure," nothing that had happened in the past few minutes had made much sense at all. "We were talking when a strange voice interrupted us, I could not see or detect any other life forms with the room, what ever had spoken caused Zoom much stress. I believe he knows what it is."

"What ever it is, Zoom thinks it wants to hurt us," He paused in thought.

"He also believes it can," Sage added. "We shall enquire more into this once he wakes up."

"Alright," Vert lifted Zoom onto the nearest bed, pulling up a chair for himself.

"Vert," Sage had turned back to her computer.

"Yeah,"

"Why were you down here?" she wasn't angry, more curious. "You're timing was perfect, but how did you know?" Vert thought for a moment.

"To be honest Sage, I didn't. I was coming to ask you if you could help me get to sleep, it's been kinda hard to doze off lately." Silence fell upon them for a moment.

"Vert,"

"Yeah?"

"I'm glad you came,"


	3. What the hell is that!

**A/N: Next chapter: UP! Enjoy.**

"_Run my darling, run," a beautiful woman with flowing red hair pushed a young boy out into the back alley behind their house._

"_But, we can't leave you behind mommy," the small boy sobbed. She brushed a few of the ebony locks from his face, kissing his forehead. _

"_I know you don't like it my dear, but he doesn't know that you and you're sister are here," she smiled sadly, gazing at the small girl besides him. "Both of you stick together and don't get caught. Be safe my angels." With that, she shut the door to them. Moments later, angry shouting could be heard from the other side of the door._

"_C'mon," he tugged at his younger sister's hand. She stared intently at the door, tears filling her eyes as she cringed at every hurtful word that leaked past the wood. "Sis, we gotta go." He pulled at her hand again. Begrudgingly she let him lead her away and soon, they were sprinting though the city._

A lonely tear ran down Zoom's cheek. He sat up groggily, wiping it away. He'd just had such a weird dream, not that he could remember much of it now, but it'd seemed so familiar. He shuddered to himself as the voice from earlier echoed through his mind. Out of all the beings in the multiverse, _that_ was the one he would've given anything to avoid ever seeing again.

"Hey," a gentle hand found his shoulder, Vert, of course. "How're you feeling?" How was it that Vert always seemed to be by his side when he needed to be?

"What happened," Zoom croaked, the words sounding small and quavering. He lay back down, suddenly feeling nauseous.

"You had a panic attack," Vert explained softly. "What caused it?" Zoom swallowed, resisting the urge to gag.

"It'll probably sound stupid," Zoom felt stupid admitting it. "It was a cat."

"A cat," Vert was finding it had not to be skeptical, but that did sound stupid. How could a cat scare you so much that you pass out?

"You think it sounds stupid, don't you," Zoom sat up, sighing in annoyance as he swung his feet off the opposite side in the bed, turning his back to his leader.

"Hey," Vert stood, leaning across the bed, trying to look into his face. "I never said I didn't believe you, it's just… a little odd. You're gonna have to explain this one."

"Fine," Zoom sighed, twisting back to face Vert. "Well, it's like…" Vert groaned inwardly as Sage's voice came over the PA system, accompanied by the blaring of an alarm.

"Storm shock in T-minus 3 minutes,"

"Gear up Zoom, you can explain later,"

**Jungle Battlezone**

"Surrender the key, sub-species," Kalus roared, frightening the unusual wildlife that was native to their current battle zone. Zoom raced ahead, clutching the key, Vert and the Cortez brothers covering his tail.

"Beat it whiskers," Vert shot back. "Agura, cover our trail, I'm thinking road block."

"On it," She paused to tear down a few of the densely packed trees, tossing them into the only road to their portal. "Access denied fish breath." Kalus bellowed in frustration as the team slipped through the portal, leaving the Vandal warlord with the smoldering wrecks of his team.

"Hey Zoom," Agura called over the com on the way back to the Hub. "You seemed pretty distracted back there, are you alright?"

"I'm fine," he tried to sound cheery, but judging by the irritated noise that leaked through the speakers it obviously didn't work. "I've just got something on my mind, that's all."

The team drove in silence for a while, enjoying the silence and the slowly fading evening sun. Zoom perked up during their casual drive, using the surrounding rocks and canyons to do tricks and stunts with his Chopper.

"Zoom, calm it down a little," Agura cried, her motherly sides kicking in as Zoom did a back flip off the side of a canyon wall. "You end up hurting yourself if you're not careful." Zoom snorted at the idea.

"She's right Zoom," Vert joined their conversation, sounding concerned, not scolding him, yet anyway. "The last thing we want or need is a team member down. Keep doing your jumps, but no more flips that put you in danger of fall to the ground with a heavy bike on top of you, okay?"

"Fine," Zoom whispered, annoyed. "I still think you're over reacting, it's not like anything's gonna… Whoa!"

Vert switched from lazy teen to leader in a flash as he watched Zoom's bike swerve violently, sliding along on its side, crushing its rider's leg before throwing him off.

"Oh god, Zoom," Vert slammed down the pedal, skidding to a stop by his downed scout. "Zoom, what happened? Are you alright?"

"The cat," he stammered. Zoom's left leg was cut and bloodied, his battle suit torn to shreds, dust and grit lodging in the wounds, but he didn't seem to notice or care.

"What?" Vert … was completely lost. What was Zoom on about?

"From… from earlier," Zoom pointed towards where his bike lay, a couple dozen feet away, sat in front of it: a common everyday house cat with soft paws, sleek black fur and bright green eyes; it stood up and started walking towards them. "You asked what freaked me out… well, it was that." Vert sighed; this was getting annoying.

"Zoom, I think you've gotten a little too much sun. That is an ordinary house cat, and you think it's out to get you? This is insane!" Vert took a breath to calm himself down. He might be getting irritated at the way Zoom was acting lately, but the tears forming in the corners of the young scout's eyes reminded him that he couldn't take his frustration out on the team; not again. "I'm sorry Zoom, but be reasonable, what's a cat going to do?"

"But it's not a normal cat," Zoom sounded desperate. "It's evil, twisted, gone in the head."

"Oh my," a deep silky male voice echo around them, bouncing off of the rocky canyon walls, shaking the air, "I can't deny the first two, but I'm quite hurt but that last remark."

"Who the hell," Vert looked up on the canyon tops, trying to find the source of the oddly seductive voice. Zoom stiffened next to him.

"It's the cat Vert," he whispered, almost like he was afraid the cat would over hear. "It's a demon I swear."

"My dear boy," It chuckled in its deep tone, its shoulders bobbing up and down as it did so. "I've told you before Zoom, flattery will get you nowhere with me."

"Um…," Stanford stuck his head out from the Reverb. "Please, someone, tell me I'm not the only one who sees a talking cat harassing Zoom." The others murmured in agreement.

"Nice to know I'm not going mad, now somebody explain what the fuck is going on!"

"No…," Zoom whispered to himself as the sun finally vanished below the skyline, the moon rising to take its place.

The cat gave a hiss as it started to change shape.

**A/N: 0.o What'll happen next? You'll have to wait and see... And, for those of you who keep taking the time to read my shiz, a great big THANK YOU! ^_^**


	4. Gimme back my Scout

The cat coiled over into a crouch, like it was waiting to spring. The back of its shoulders bulged, the lithe muscles rippling underneath the sooty fur. Its back legs grew longer, developing a double knee that gave its legs a lightning bolt like shape; its front legs, morphing into arms with oversized forearms and claw like hands, it hind paws simply expanding to accommodate for its new height. Its body was extremely thin, exposing its ribs and a portion of its spine through its fur; the head stayed mostly the same, growing slightly larger so as not to look out of place on its new, bigger body. Its tail, now almost twice the length of the cat itself, had a golden bell tied to the end of it by a simple piece of string. He stood a little shorter than Sherman, his emerald eyes shimmering with intelligence.

"What the hell is that," Vert murmured, trying to weigh up the strange beast and what its motives were. "Guys, back in your vehicle, if it attacks, it doesn't leave alive."

"What about you and Zoom," Agura whispered back over the com-link.

"I'm gonna try talking to it," he explained. "Besides, Zoom's leg got battered; I don't what else he hurt so I don't want to move him yet."

"Please," it rumbled in its deep silky voice, sounding somewhat cavalier. "Allow me to introduce myself, Damien Nightclaw, Lord of the Were-cats; you're Vert Wheeler, correct?"

"That's right," Vert stood in front of his team, growing ever more suspicious of the feline beast before him, his experiences with talking cats never really having gone well in the past. "Damien, what is it you want exactly? A cold grin snaked its way across his face.

"I want," Damien fell into a crouch. "Your. Scout," Damien growled, kicking up a cloud of dust as he vanished. A muffled scream sounded behind Vert.

"Zoom," Vert spun round to find the desert floor empty, save for a few patches of blood where Zoom had sat. "Zoom!"

"Wha…," Agura's voice crackled over the com-link. "Where'd that cat go?" Her question was backed up by confused shouts from Stanford and the twins.

"I'm not sure," Vert spun round to examine the canyon. The canyon walls rose up high on either side, acting as a solid wall, blocking off any chance of escape that way. "He's got Zoom; I don't know what he intends to do with him, and definitely don't want to find out. We need to find them and get him back now."

"How," Spinner shrieked through the comm. "Didn't you see that thing? What the hell is it anyway?" Vert growled in frustration.

"Cool it Spinner," Vert began pacing as he thought; Spinner's nervous muttering rolling on in the background. "We need to stay calm and think of a plan, how about…"

"Don't bother," the words were purred softly into his ear. "You'll not make it in time to save him; you may as well just go home."

"Bastard," Vert yelled, lashing out behind himself in a desperate attempt to at least touch the phantom feline and re-affirm his existence. He managed to grab a handful inky fur, which earned him an angry hiss. "Give me back my scout, flee-bag!"

"Oh, I'm afraid when I'm done with him, there won't be anything left," Damien sighed contently, standing just out of reach, a terrified Zoom dangling helplessly in his grasp. He yelped in pain as the beast shook him like a rag doll.

"Put him down," Vert grabbed his sword from the Saber. He stopped and took a deep breath, getting angry wasn't going to solve this problem, he needed to stay calm.

"Umm… Vert," Stanford, he sounded nervous and confused. "Should I fire?"

"No," the reply was instant. "We can't risk hitting Zoom."

"Smart boy; I wouldn't if I were you," Damien's eyes were burning like emerald flames, fangs showing like three inches of polished ivory below his smirking lips. "Come too close and I might just…" He gently drew a claw across Zoom's neck, causing the scout to whimper. Desperation welled up inside Vert as he realized there was nothing he could do; the moment he moved, Zoom would be gone. Shooting Damien down was too risky: even if they managed to land a shot, there was still the chance that Zoom would get hurt too, an as far as Vert was concerned, that was never going to be an option.

"Damien," ok, Vert knew he was going mad now, was that a woman he heard?

"You're too late, sister," Damien laughed psychotically; Zoom crying out as he was tossed around again. "I've still gotten what I came here for!"

"Don't you dare!" she called back furiously as Damien sunk his glimmering white fangs into Zoom's shoulder. Zoom's cry carried over the hollow air, filling the desert with the sound of his pain. Vert couldn't take in anymore, the sight of the young scout's blood flowing past Damien's lips, his fear stricken, tear stained face growing paler by the second was just too must for him to comprehend. This wasn't real, it couldn't be.

"Let him go!" the female voice roared as a pure white beast flew from the side of the canyon, barreling into Damien mere seconds after he'd sunk in his fangs. Both went cannoning off across the dusty ground, Zoom, simply dropped and forgotten. Vert's mind suddenly rebooted as the chance to save his scout presented itself. He dashed across the space between them, skidding to a stop by Zoom's side.

"Come on Zoom, speak to me," Vert gently lifted him into his arms. Two neat circles had been punched through his left shoulder; each nearly an inch wide. He also had claw marks on his right arm were Damien had held him; his leg had shredded when his Chopper landed on him earlier and he'd acquired several cuts across his entire body. Zoom stirred, his eyes flicked open; his gaze was weak, unfocused.

"Vert," he muttered, trying and failing to focus on his leader.

"I'm right here, big guy," Vert choked a smile, wanting to instill confidence and security. "You're gonna be alright, trust me."

"I told you it wasn't a cat," the words were faint, slurred.

"I know," Vert pulled the younger boy into his chest, tears of regret forming in his eyes. "I should've listened to you, I'm sorry." Zoom snuggled in against him.

"It's kay…," he murmured, half asleep. "How could you have known…?"

"Zoom, no, do not fall asleep," Vert pleaded. "You have to hold on a little longer, you'll be alright." A feral shriek of rage came from one of the beasts: Damien. Vert looked up to see the dark furred monstrosity sporting a few cuts and gashes of his own, the most prominent of which slashed across his chest and his left eye.

"Wheeler," the bloodied cat bellowed, still acting irritatingly cavalier. "I must leave now, but I promise I'll come back and play again soon." With that he crouched onto all fours and disappeared across the desert.

"Vert, how is… oh," Agura ran over, stopping upon seeing Zoom, her hands flying to her mouth. "Is he…?" Vert caught what she was trying to say.

"Not yet, but at this rate, he will be," Vert stood slowly, supporting Zoom's full weight. "Ok, we need to get to Sage, ASAP. Help me get him into the Reverb."

"Watch your back, Vert," Stanford locked his sonic canons over Vert's shoulder. "You need animal control."

"Wait," the white cat, she stood about ten feet away, blood stained claws held up in surrender.

"Back off," Vert rounded on her, clutching Zoom to his chest. He was surprised to see the cat with her hands, claws, paws; whatever they were, in the air in a passive gesture.

"Please, wait," she spoke soft and clearly. "Your friend, he's dying, I can help him if you'll let me." He eyed he suspiciously.

"Why should we trust you, considering what just happened?"

"Would you judge all of human-kind based on the actions of one, independent individual?" she dropped her claws, walking slowly towards them as she spoke, stopping in front of Vert, having to look up slightly to make eye contact. "Or would you wait to make a more educated summarization?"

"Vert, we're running out of time," Agura gripped his shoulder. "At this rate, Zoom's not going to make it; let her try." Vert thought for a moment, Zoom flinching in his arms every time he moved. They really didn't have another choice, did they?

"Help him."

**A/N: And.. hey presto, another chapter is born! Sorry about the really long wait, I hope this chapter made up for that. *Gets down on knees and begs***

**Anyway, thanks for reading, feel free to review, enjoy, make a sammich, hug a duck, lick a window...**


	5. White cats and black cats and Zoom, ohmy

**A/N: Ok guys, I'm sorry; for some reason, I just couldn't write this. On the bright side, it's finally finished; I'll appologise now for making you read a shiz-load of description, but hopefully you'll forgive me. ^_^"**

Vert lay his scout on the ground before the white Were-cat, watching carefully and somewhat skeptically. She had much the same appearance as Damien, with the jutting ribs, enlarged forearms and claw like hands. The only differences, besides fur color and height –Damien being significantly taller- were her eyes, and the bell tied to the end of her own tail. Her bell was shaped like a small human skull, which was silver rather than gold, and fixed by a thin silver chain in stead of string. Her eyes were mis-matched; the right one was deep black, the left one, crimson. She also had four piercings in her left ear. The team watched with silent curiosity and concern for their scout as she knelt by his side, keeping a both wondering and careful eye on their new feline 'friend'.

"Who are you, exactly," Vert asked cautiously as she laid her hands on his scout's wounds. "Better yet, what? None of us are really sure."

"My name is Myranstis Goldfur," she seemed to lift herself slightly, a little puff of pride. "I'm the last of the thirteen Fangs of the Night, mages that governed the Were-cat race." "What's a Were-cat?" Spinner whispered to Stanford, who replied with a simple shrug. Myranstis sighed irritably and continued to explain.

"A Were-cat is much like a werewolf from human folklore and legends, only, rather than have an uncontrollable change happen every month, we have the ability to shift between three forms." – Intrigued glances from Agura and Sherman spurred her on to elaborate - "All Were-cats are born in the form I am currently in, for which we are considered frightening and dangerous. For those of us who can master complex magic, we can also transform into the image of what you humans call a house cat…"

"If that's the case," Vert cut in. "Then why didn't he just saunter up in his normal form and steal Zoom from right under or noses?" As much as he hated the idea that someone could spirit away one of his team so easily, he had to wonder why the Were-cat would go through so much hassle just to kill the young Thai… it just didn't add up.

"That's where the third and final form for Were-cats comes in," she explained patiently, her eyes never lifting from her work. "Form three is that of a human." –she carried on, ignoring their unmasked surprised that a demonic cat could look human- "Some of my kind are born with the natural ability to do the human transformation, just as some humans are more talented at, drawing for instance, than others might be. Upon the transformation being discovered, however, others began to seek that power as their own, using dark rituals; humans becoming play things and experiments. After years of research, testing and failed attempts that usually ended in multiple deaths, a way was found of acquiring the transformation other than birthright. But that knowledge was burn millennia ago when the great archive was destroyed…"

"Uh… Myranstis, was it?" Agura crouched opposite, watching the cat intently whilst she worked.

"I know," she smiled at the hunter, a friendly, almost sad smile, nothing like the terrifying smirk Damien wore earlier; a genuine smile. "Stupid name right? It's too long and formal, if you ask me; change it to something better if you like."

"Alright then, how about Myra," Agura couldn't help but grin as she purred softly at her new name.

"I love it; it's so pretty, like the moon…"

"Myra," Agura continued to stare at her claw-like hands, wishing she could see what was going on beneath them; what was happening to Zoom's wound. "Can you tell us what the technique for acquiring the third form is?"

"Done," Myra exclaimed with delight, as if she'd not heard Agura's question at all. "Now for the unpleasant part…" Her furry brows furrowed in concentration as the teens look on, baffled. She clapped her claws together, two neat circles punching themselves into her left shoulder as she did so, ribs shattering with what must've been the force of the original force of the bite. She gave a hiss as she hunched over, droplets of blood splashing on desert ground.

"Myra," half the team launched into a flurry of questions concerning her welfare.

"I'm fine!" she panted, raising a claw. "I'm fine…" –she straightened up, showing her shoulder again- "See, all gone."

"Amazing," Sherman gasped, his love for biological science kicking in. "How does that work?"

"Rapid regeneration of molecular cells allows for advanced healing time. So longs as my heart keeps beating I'm fine."

"Oh my god," Spinner squealed excitedly. "This is so cool it's just like this new video game called 'Attack of the Killer- mmffmfmfmf!"

"Sorry bro," Sherman chuckled, his hand over Spinner's mouth. "But no one cares."

"So Myra," Vert stared at her, picking up where his hunter left off. "Do you know the method for attaining the human transformation? If you do, would you mind telling us?"

"The necessary method for obtaining this ability requires two separate-birth siblings from the same parents, roughly the same age and of the opposite gender." Half of the crowd around her stared in confusion, She sighed in irritation before continuing to explain once again.

"It means you need a brother and a sister with the same biological mother and father, born no more than a year apart; twins don't work. There was another requirement that was extremely specific, but I can't remember what…"

"Why are you telling us all of this," Vert was thankful of the improved understanding that the insight was giving him, but the relaxed openness she was showing towards them, as strangers even, was puzzling at best. "You don't even…"

"Because I can't stop him alone," Myra interjected; tone almost as sharp as her claws, yet laced with a certain sense of defeat. "Damien is older, wiser, stronger, faster and quicker witted, if only fractionally in the latter. The fact that I managed to fight him off earlier was entirely due to him already being tired and me managing to gain the element of surprise; in a drawn out battle, I'd have no hope."

"Why us," Vert asked, torn between helping and staying as far away from these beast as he could.

"You're vehicles," she pointed towards the Chopper as she spoke. "They're sentient based, which means you must know a sentient, or at the very least, how to use their technology, they would be a great help in fighting Damien, I'm sure of it… it's gonna rain."

"Say what," Vert was thrown off by the sheer irrelevance of it.

"It's going to rain," she repeated, snowy ears twitching slightly in distaste. "I don't like it when it rains at night, you can't see the stars."

"Let's get back to Hub," Vert scooped up his still unconscious scout, depositing him, with some help, into the Reverb's passenger seat; Sherman stowing what was left of Zoom's bike into the back of the Buster. "You can come with us if you like; I think Sage will want to hear about this."

"Wait, y-you mean to say that you're…" her eyes shone with barely concealed hope as her ears perked up.

"I didn't say we'd help," Vert corrected her swiftly; he didn't want anyone making assumptions. "But we will hear you out. Whether or not we give our aid is something that has to be decided as a team."

"Slight problem mate," Stanford called across to Vert, cutting off any sort of response from the Were-cat. "Unless our feline friend there comes in a travel size, she's going to have to run like hell to keep up."

"Well then," Myra purred, a smirk spreading across her face. "Travel sized it is." A small disk of unearthly light split the evening dusk above the feline beast, just wide enough to cover her before it dropped down over her head, causing a bright flash that blinded the group for a moment.

"What the hell was that," Vert gasped; noticing the absence of the Were-cat, he added "Myra, where'd you go?"

"Down here, silly," something rubbed against Vert's leg, making him jump. He looked down to see a small, white cat with sleek fur and a sliver bell on the end of its tail…

"Myra," a hint of wonder found its way into Vert voice as he gazed at the petit cat nuzzling against his ankles.

"You wanted travel sized," she almost seemed to chuckle as she jumped into the Saber. "Now let's get going before it starts raining." Vert found himself grinning as the first drops of rain hit his windscreen, little did he know what he'd just gotten his team in to.

**A/N: So, what'd you think? Am I forgiven? Just leave a review - feel free to tell me off for laziness =3 **

**Ps: Kgirl, you made me giggle with your last review, so I pinched it for my chapter title - hope you don't mind! 0.0**


	6. Bad Saturday morning

**A/N: Hey guys! Sorry about the ... um, four month? wait. My excuse? ...I died? ^_^ Not cutting it? Well, here's another chapter. It's half the length of the other's, but it just felt like the right place to cut off. **

**Major thanks to Lemmiere Chrys - Your comment made my day. :D It's nice to know I'm not the only wierdo who likes picking on characters!**

**Also to jazzmonkey, hypersreak, BloodyGoddess and Leaves are Fun (love the name btw) your comments always leave me with enthusiasm and another angle of my story to think about. I love you guys! 3**

**Anyways! Enjoy! **

Vert woke up the next morning with a killer headache, lights pounded against his eyes and noises rattled his skull. He thought about staying in bed, but he knew he had more important things to do than lay around all day. With that thought in mind, he set off towards the Hub's kitchen to grab some pain killers to help him face the day ahead.

After grabbing some toast and an ice pack, Vert made a beeline for the lounge – no one else would be awake just yet so he was going to enjoy a moment of piece. However, that plan was ruined when Vert heard soft singing coming from the lounge.

"Doux minou, minou chaud, petite boule de fourrure," Vert could only think of one person who would be singing in French…

"AJ," the blonde poked his head through the doorway to see the bulky Canadian stroking something in his arms. "Dude, have you lost it? Why are you singing and in french no less?"

"What, oh, hey Vert," the bubbly Canadian smile at him, still stroking whatever was in his arms. "Was I using French? My bad, I was just singing for my little kitty friend here." He grinned like a maniac, proudly holding up small white cat with old eyes and a bell on the end of its tail.

"AJ," Vert sighed, pressing the ice pack against his eyes as he sat besides his friend. "Where did you find that cat?"

"She was just wandering around the Hub, why?" he frowned, holding onto his new-found feline friend protectively. "She already told me you let her in – you brought her back with you last night."

"You keep such delightful humans here," Myra purred softly from her place nestled against AJ's chest. "He's so warm and cozy."

"He's my friend," Vert smirked slightly, thinking back to when he'd stayed up north with AJ one winter a while back – there had been a power outage and to keep warm they'd had to huddle together; he remembered saying something similar. "Not your personal snuggle spot. We've got more important things to focus on right now anyway. AJ, go get everyone up."

"Will do captain," AJ hopped to his feet after setting Myra down on the couch. "Meet you in the garage in ten, see you."

"Come on you," Vert grabbed Myra by the scruff of her neck – he'd never been too fond of cats and he doubted that was going to change any time soon. "We're going to meet Sage, see what she thinks of you." Myra's eyes flashed dangerously as she hissed, writhing out of Vert's grasp. The surprised blonde dropped her, taking a few hurried steps back. "What the-"

"Don't lug me around," she growled, changing back to her demon form, furry shoulders tensing up indignantly. "How dare you _man-handle_ me like some common household _pet_!"

"Hey," Vert was _not_ in the mood for this; damn cats and their bloody pride… "Do you want to remember just who's in charge here? Now, you can either follow me down to the garage or you can get the hell out of here; to be honest, I don't care."

"Well," Myra huffed after regaining her composure. "We'd best be on our way then… Which way is it to the garage?" Vert mentally face-palmed – Why did it have to be a cat? Proud, regal, ever poised, god-damn annoying cat…

Vert led his feline irritation to the garage to wait for the rest of the team, taking a certain amount of satisfaction in the fact the dent in her pride was keeping her more docile. By the time they reached the garage however, most of the team was already there, lounging around on nearby vehicles or toolboxes, annoyed by the sudden morning call from an over-friendly Canadian.

"Morning team," he tried to brighten the dismal atmosphere emanating from the tired teens. "Anyone see Sage yet?"

"I am here Vert," came the gentle, slightly metallic voice of everyone's favorite glow-y blue friend. Sage floated into the garage, glancing up at the team. "Why were you…" she trailed off, her eyes landing on Myra's slender form standing gracefully behind Vert. "Who let that in?"

"W-what," Vert stammered; he hadn't expected Sage to react like this. Here eyes hardened, becoming cold, merciless. She morphed one of her hands into a sword like the team had seen her brother do so many times before. "Since when-"

"Who," Sage interrupted him, rising her bladed hand. "Who let that vile _beast_ into the Hub."

**A/N: So, I still got it? Gimme your opinion/scolding for taking so long; let me know, I love hearing from you guys. Also, thanks to everyone - whether you review or not - for sticking with this story, it's nice to know my diviations and wild plot bunnies are appriciated. ^_^  
>I should be writing more regular again, this chapter served as a wonderful obstacle but now that I'm past it, the plot line should come easier. <strong>


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